And If Night Comes
by artcmisia
Summary: the Light of the Eldar is leaving Middle-Earth, and after what has felt like centuries a certain she-elf joins in on the Quest of the Ring. surviving dragonfire seems like a reprieve in comparison to going to Mordor. [10th Walker, rated for fantasy violence]
1. 00

_first off, hi guys! it's been.. probably a century and a half, since i've written anything. this edition (hopefully final?) of my LOTR fic was an epiphany that snowballed into what you're going to see here. i regret nothing tbh and honestly i like how this fic is coming out. as of today i'm barely finishing through the Fellowship leg of this fic but that's because i've been sitting on it for so long.. anyway, i'll shut up now and let you readers do what you do best. enjoy!_

_an: i don't own Lord of the Rings or any of Tolkien's works, just my character and what's been written here._

* * *

**prologue**

* * *

The pale grey mare gave a slight whinny as she and her master hurriedly shuffled aside to let a cart move past them up along the path at a rather anxious pace, the horse's ears flicking to and fro in mild annoyance at being spooked.

A slight chuckle came from her master, and she looked over her shoulder at the steed before continuing to her destination, following the cart's wake. "Seems the esteemed burglar has got the entirety of Eriador in a tizzy, doesn't he?" the woman wondered.

It was not as if this surprised her, because it didn't; she had visited him enough times within the last count of years to know when he felt like being a socialite and when he felt like being a hermit.

Granted that, when birthday parties were on the agenda, he was the talk of the town!

The round green door of Bag End closed just as the cart that had carried all sorts of odd do-dads and other things doubled back on the winding path down, making its way to the main and likewise-winding small paths of the village, just as both horse and woman appeared at the foot of the home's gate door.

A slight furrow graced the woman's brow as she read the sign that had been nailed to the gate front, "'_No Admittance Except on Party Business'_…" Nostrils flaring with a soft snort of amusement, her lips quirked up at the corners. "Haven't changed a bit, have you?" She muttered. She then fastened the mare's reins to a sideboard of the fence for her to graze on the verdant grass at the foot of the small hill. Shrugging her quiver and bow onto her shoulder as she set foot on the small path before closing the gate, she walked up to the green door of the home.

A momentary surge of nostalgia tugged at her conscious, but she shoved it away as quickly as it had come, clearing her throat and knocking once on the wood.

"_No thank you!_ We don't want any well-wishers, visitors, or distant relations!" Came a male voice from inside the home.

"Not even a she-elf?" Huffed the woman, valiantly keeping a grin from showing as she then heard a pause before hurried shuffling, and she straightened only seconds before the door was pulled open from inside.

Bilbo Baggins was not the rumpled fifty-something year old hobbit he had been the first time they met but rather an esteemed hobbit who had aged with grace within the last ten years since she had seen him, his once-brown curly mop now grayed with growing white patches, and he'd even seemed to shrink an inch or so, if she were to wager… But _there_, in his brown eyes that lit up at seeing her on his doorstep, _there_ was the only indication that he was the same halfling who had come face-to-face with a dragon and trolls and orcs and elves… the very same burglar she had counted as one of her dearest friends for the last century.

"Good gracious, I did not think you would arrive so soon! It's so good to see you, Eäriel!" The former burglar laughed as he stepped forward to embrace her tight.

Eäriel laughed as well and had knelt to properly embrace her old friend, beaming as they drew away and she added gently, "I wouldn't miss your birthday for the world, Bilbo!" She then added with a bemused arch of her brow, "seems you've been busy getting the Shire in a tizzy once again, Master Burglar."

* * *

_possibly the shortest chapter i've ever written, but i hope you lot have enjoyed it. also keep in mind that if you haven't read the prequel of this in my Hobbit fic, Crownless Kings and Lionhearts, please do otherwise you'll probably be lost on a couple of things. later!_


	2. 01

**River**

* * *

"You know the servants could've done that." The elf lord commented. He had been looking for her for the last ten minutes, give or take, only to find her in the gardens gathering a few herbs to tuck them into a beige pouch she kept in her bag.

Rolling her eyes as her back was to him, his adoptive daughter straightened from her crouch to look on him, "While I'm seen as your daughter for all intents and purposes, I'm not about to have someone do a job I can do for myself, Uncle." She nodded her chin at the folded parchment he had in hand and asked, "Didn't pain you to sign it, did it?"

An unamused line crossed his face. "It didn't, no." He handed the document to her as she had tucked the pouch into her bag, watching it disappear into the sack not long after, "Although it isn't _me_ you should fret about." He mused.

"Honestly, Uncle…" She half-groaned, turning to leave the gardens and hearing him follow her exit, "I stopped caring about what he said decades ago, for one, _and_ for another, Mum would understand after everything that's happened."

Both elves had left the gardens in favor of going to the entrance courtyard where she was to depart from in order to carry out her small quest.

Elrond smiled wryly at the last bit, knowing that to be true indeed; Elenathiel was one of the kindest and most sympathetic of elves he had had the pleasure of befriending, both traits having been passed along to the mentioned elleth's daughter. "She would, yes." He folded his arms as she was about to leave with her bag, quiver and blades on her person, adding albeit vainly, "Try to play nice this time."

Shrugging the quiver's thick strap onto her left shoulder, Eäriel looked on him and Lindir for a brief moment before a teasing smirk crossed her lips, "Don't I always?" She nodded in respect to the lord of the house and turned away to start walking down the stone pathway without another look back.

* * *

By all rights she wanted to go to the Lonely Mountain first.

She would've been warmly received by the dwarves that reigned there in the reinstated kingdom of Erebor, at least, enough to want to stay longer than Elrond would like before she was to go back home… but business before pleasure, as the saying went.

Having chosen to leave Aeglos back home was wise in her mind, considering Mirkwood had grown darker since she had last trekked through its winding paths, she had utilized her gift to fly over the treetops to locate her destination as it was in the heart of the forest. It often struck her as odd that she felt a tug in the pit of her stomach when locating the kingdom, the tug much like the one she had felt when she had first returned to Mirkwood.

Eäriel landed as an elf on the stone bridge leading to the kingdom's thick doors, briefly cocking a brow when the two guards that had been stationed at the doors wasted no time in brandishing their spears in her direction. "Sorry 'bout that, lads." She apologized with a sheepish look on her lovely face, withdrawing the parchment from her jerkin's fold, and pretending they hadn't stiffened when she had pulled out the slip, "I've come to give a message to your king, from Lord Elrond of Imladris."

Both helmeted elves relaxed a bit when she explained her business, and the left-hand guard looked to his counterpart before stating, "Very well, milady." He nodded to the right-hand guard who called for the doors to open from the other side.

'_Less wise and more suspicious_' seemed to suit her kinsmen better, in her opinion, but she kept silent as she was allowed into the kingdom only moments later and proceeded to follow the stone path inside.

One ellon she recognized as Elros came to escort her as soon as the doors closed behind her entrance, and Eäriel walked at his left up the long path that led to the stone dais where the Elvenking sat on his throne. Inwardly shaking off the memory of the last time she had been escorted to the dais, the elleth schooled her face into a polite mask she scarcely used lest Elrond had company in the settlement as she was brought to the top of the dais where the lord sat waiting.

Having straightened in the comfortable cushion, Thranduil's cool gaze locked and momentarily sized up the messenger bird. There was one or two new frown lines on his brow, she noticed, but otherwise he still looked as he did the last time that she had seen him. The memory of their spat weighed on him the longer he looked on her, but he knew that wasn't why she had forced herself to come to his halls. The elf lord shifted to lean back somewhat in his chair as both sets of blue eyes met, "It's been some time since I've seen you skulking through my halls." He spoke first.

Eäriel ignored the old urge to retort, holding his stare in hers as she replied calmly, "I won't be long, I assure you, as I'm only here on business." She handed the slip of parchment to Elros who took it to hand to the regal blonde, "Lord Elrond wishes that you join in the meet… whether you show up in person is on you, of course." She added when he took the invitation and briefly skimmed the folded side that had his name scrawled on it, pulling the second folded parchment from her left wrist guard's confines and handing it to Elros next. "_This_, though, is for you personally." She nodded to the second parchment that Thranduil opened when being handed it.

Blue eyes flicking up at the messenger after scanning over the well-written letter, Thranduil raised a dark brow. "I would hope you didn't coerce your dear uncle too harshly. Not in a thousand years would Elrond ever break a contract…" He wondered with distaste towards both she and her former guardian.

"Well, he did." She interjected calmly, the childish part of her subconscious proud of the miffed furrow in his brow, continuing, "Elrond and I talked it over, sometime after Erebor, and he deemed that the engagement be terminated… I won't explain why, though, given you know my reason. You've known since I came back to Mirkwood that I wouldn't marry your son."

He lowered the parchment to the small table next to his chair and took the half-empty glass of red wine in hand to drink, looking up at the resigned and, if one looked closer, saddened dimming in her blue eyes. "It didn't take the wisdom of centuries to know how you felt towards that dwarf. Relieved as I am that you won't be my daughter-in-law, I feel that I should remind you that mortal lives are fleeting in comparison to an elf's." He stated.

Eäriel suppressed the bristle along her spine at his reminder, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. "If that's all you're going to say, then I must be off. The Grey Havens are a long way from here, you know." She said as she shifted to begin her departure.

Mildly impressed at her maturity that seemed stronger now than how it once was, Thranduil nodded a bit. "You can tell Elrond that I will send my emissaries to the meet." He said dismissively.

Saying nothing in retort, even though his reminder stung just the slightest, the elleth turned on her heel to stride away from the dais down the stone walkway.

She kept her brisk pace as she reached the entrance, letting the guards open the tall gates to let her out before she loped past them. Bones creaking as she ached for nothing more than to flee, the elleth took to the skies as a raven, giving a sharp caw in her departure with her heart set on the Lonely Mountain only miles away.

* * *

"It looks better as an earring." He said as he handed her the mug of ale.

His brother regarded that she downed the ale like a thirsty man with water, chuckling for her sake, "Calm yourself, Eäri, there's loads more where that came from."

The elleth wiped her mouth with the back of her wrist, a habit she had picked up from being among their people, "Thank you, lads. I just needed to leave there… being back even for a short hour was incredibly vexing." The memories of her life in Mirkwood had made her ache for Erebor and therein explained why she had flown to said kingdom as fast as she could. It wasn't like she hadn't visited the dwarves in the last hundred years, as she had in fact done so because she had promised their king that she would, rather it was that she felt more at ease away from her people.

Both dwarves couldn't find room to disagree with her, in all honesty; their detour into the Woodland Realm was the first and last time they would ever be in the same kingdom as Thranduil. "Tauriel's said he's been a bit crabbier than he was before…" Kili mused aloud.

Eäriel smiled wryly at hearing of her old friend, nodding to the braid woven into his dark hair, "I should clock you for not making me the maid of honor." She lamented.

"They've been too _busy_ clogging the kingdom with their happiness to bother sending you a raven," Fili reached to gently shove his younger brother whose ears had reddened, smiling cheerily when the other pouted at his teasing. "Did Lord Elrond twist your arm to make you come and invite us in person?" He wondered.

"I _begged_ him not to, honestly, but it's his house…" Eäriel sulked, the exaggerated pout on her face beginning to waver the longer their stares held.

The odd trio couldn't hold it in for much longer, and it was only minutes later that they were all laughing.

* * *

_* "**the River**" by **Bishop Briggs** (fun fact, someone made an MCU fanvid to this song and Damn did they do the Thing well. s/o to the vid's creator!)_


	3. 02

**a Quiet Thought, a Quiet Word**

* * *

Steeling herself from letting an ounce of fear bleed into her already-tensed nerves, her lip curled in frustration.

The council was to meet in a week and, given both she and the twins had played the part of messenger bird, she was first back to Rivendell in time to greet Gandalf who came a week later than he had been expected. The wizard had told both she and Elrond of the reason for his delay, stating that Saruman had betrayed them to side with Sauron, confirming the century-old inkling she had had about the conniving sorcerer, but that was water under the proverbial bridge now.

She kept Aeglos in hiding in a nearby brush tall enough to hide a horse (or an elf) and had made a run for the watchtower of Amon-Sûl, an abandoned landmark at this point in time, racing up the winding stairwell carved into the stone and keeping to the shadows as she did so. Ducking behind one tall pillar when she reached the top of the stairs, she poked her head out to see five cloaked figures clad in black-as-night cloaks slowly advancing on their intended prey, and she swallowed a growl of anger when seeing the hunters' intended.

The elf had ducked back into the shadows and raised a hand to her quiver to remove her long knives as silently as she could, squeezing the handles on reflex when the cornered party gave a short cry before a skirmish broke out, and she stepped out just as the Wraiths converged on the four. Fast as an arrow, she dove between the two parties, fending off two of the black-clad beasts. "Go crawling back to your master, filth!" She threatened between breaking away from the first Wraith only to dodge the second who made to stab at her ribs.

A scream of pain came from amongst the four with her, and her ears cringed at the noise as the Wraiths weren't the source, her attention snapping to the new figure wielding a lit torch and a sword in his hands as he gave a battle cry when emerging from the dark to join her in the fray. Glancing at the new ally as the amber light of the torch highlighted his face, she barked a laugh of relief before ducking when he struck at the Wraith she was parrying, casting it aflame and sending it screeching away with singed robes. Punting away the third creature only to sharply slash at its middle and send it cowering back into the shadows, the she-elf looked away as the man tossed his torch into the hidden face of the last Wraith who had sought to sneak up on their friends.

The last Ring-Wraith screeched shrilly as it dropped back before fleeing into the darkness beyond the six's sight, its pained cry fading on the air within seconds, and a relieved respite settled on the tower's top.

Eäriel puffed as she returned her knives to her quiver, turning to her comrade, "_Fashionably late, were you not?_" She asked in her tongue.

Sheathing his sword as well, the Ranger's green eyes rested on her blue and he huffed, replying in like, "_Whereas you were punctually early!_" A smile weighed on his scruffy face as he switched to common tongue, "I had expected to meet you once we were closer to the Ford."

A soft chuckle came from the Wanderer as her nostrils flared in bemusement, before she stepped closer to throw her arms around him and be received with an equally-warm embrace. "I had a feeling you would need my aid at a sooner moment, and it's a good thing I came." She answered as they drew apart.

"Strider!" Sam's call stopped the man from speaking again, causing both comrades to go to the hobbits' aid.

Eäriel took a brief once-over of the injured Frodo and she grumbled a curse, "This isn't good…"

"Miss Eäriel?" Pippin said first in surprise, causing the named elf to look between he and Merry with equal surprise.

"What on earth are you two doing here?" Gandalf never said anything about the two other hobbits, and her softness towards their folk made her sound sharp with worry.

Frodo gave a moan of pain, yanking their general attention to his state again.

"Help him!" Sam said as he looked between elf and man.

Strider lifted the fallen dagger that had stabbed the halfling, letting it turn to dust as he pointed out, "he was stabbed by a Morgul blade."

Eäriel nodded slightly, jaw set just a bit with worry, looking to her friend as she stated, "We can't linger here for long." She placed a gentle hand against the shivering halfling's forehead and cheeks, frowning when noting his already-clammy skin was growing colder. "Come on, they can't track us as easily if we head into the brush." She urged, straightening and gesturing the three hobbits follow her lead down the tower steps as the tallest of their party lifted the injured Frodo into his arms and they left the tower together.

* * *

It didn't take long before the odd pack reached the safety of the trees and found themselves in a clearing where there had once been a troll camp.

"Look, Frodo, the trolls that Bilbo told us about…" Sam was saying to Frodo as the taller two were lingering near the gray mare who had come to them when her master whistled.

"I knew we would encounter the Wraiths, but I didn't think to bring anything to cure this," the Ranger admitted to her as he greeted the horse with a gentle pat to the faint blaze on her forehead, looking to his friend who rifled through the medicinal pouch in her mare's saddlebag that she had brought from home.

"Neither of us expected they would pull this… they've grown bolder." The elleth replied before finding what she had been looking for, "You little beauty!" She beamed at withdrawing the clump of Athelas leaves from her bag just as Frodo gasped in pain nearby, to which she ripped off a piece of the verge to chew on it and make a salve and go to his aid.

"Is he going to die?" Pippin asked concernedly as elf and man returned to tend to his cousin.

Spitting out the salve to gently dab it on his shoulder wound, Eäriel shushed the hobbit in the same manner when he gave a gasp as if for air, "not so long as I breathe, but this won't be enough to completely heal him. He needs the skill of my uncle." She promised.

"We're still six days from Rivendell," the Ranger reminded from holding a lit torch above them to let her work.

Eäriel shook her head, "I have Aeglos, I can carry him with me. He'll be in Rivendell in less than three days. Aeglos is only second to Asfaloth in terms of speed… besides, I do not fear them; you know that, _Gwador_." She said stubbornly as she lifted her gaze to meet her companion's with all seriousness.

Green held blue for a moment before the former inhaled and nodded once. "Be quick about it, then, and we will follow come morning." He received a slight smile in return from the elleth who stood to see to her horse, lifting the hobbit to carry him to place him in the saddle as the mare's rider hoisted herself up to take the reins in her hands. "And be careful, _Gwathel_." He added as she paused to leave, looking on her.

Eäriel puffed and spared him another smile, glancing back at the trio of halflings before leaning to quietly say to her mare, "_Come my friend, we must be as swift as the wind_." She gripped the reins tight as Aeglos whinnied at that and galloped away into the dark, picking up the pace once they left the trees' shelter in their wake.

* * *

Aeglos raced through the brush as daylight came on them, having galloped through the last night and only slowing a bit when dawn had come, appearing for all the world as a white streak that cut through the small trees that had sprouted in the once-rolling grasslands of the Bruinen valley.

Sharp ears perking at the all-but quiet cracking of twigs and loose branches of the trees sounded, the elleth glanced at her right for a half-second to spot a rider in black coming to flank her, and she swore when hearing the same noise at her left. "Aeglos hurry!" She barked, knowing by heart that it was only an hour or two until they reached the Ford, hearing the mare whinny as she picked up the pace to practically spirit out into the open fields.

Eäriel looked behind her for a moment and growled in anger at seeing all of the Nine were at her tail, looking ahead as she silently begged the gods to let she and her companions escape with their lives. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a black gloved hand claw at her left just as they were reaching the end of the valley, to which she yanked the reins and caused Aeglos to slam into the Wraith's steed to knock it back. She barely stifled a yelp when Aeglos shot off a half-second later to get away from the Wraiths, as anxious to get away from them as her rider.

Relief filled her chest as they finally reached the Ford, and the gray mare made one last push as she dashed across the stream to skid to a halt on the safer side, turning with a short neigh just as their hunters skidded to a halt across the way.

"_Give up the halfling, she-elf!_" The leader of the Wraiths hissed coldly in common tongue, threatening to make the hairs on her arms stand on end underneath her vambrances.

Nocking an arrow in her bow she had drawn on habit, Eäriel allowed a brazen smirk, "Try and take him, then, filth." She flexed her grip on the bow's curve as the first Wraith started to cross the stream, feeling Aeglos fidget beneath her.

The waters of the Ford began to rise in strength, suddenly, as a voice came from behind her. Lowering her bow, she listened and watched as the magicked river came crashing down on the Wraiths in the visage of a stampede of horses that then washed them downstream.

"At this point you should know that you're not above the aid of anyone." A familiar gentle voice said, causing her to turn and see her sister standing there with her arms folded.

Eäriel rolled her eyes at that, "Like you know he's not happy that you're here instead of inside the sanctity of Imladris." She retorted, gently shushing her weary companion as she turned Aeglos to approach her sister.

Arwen afforded a mild look that earned a grin from her adopted sibling, being given the reins to steer the tired horse back home.

* * *

_* "**the Call**" by **Regina Spektor** (hey look a x-over between Narnia and Lord of the Rings! .. well, somewhat.)_


	4. 03

**From Way Across the Sea**

* * *

Turning the page as her eyes reluctantly switched from the map of western Middle-Earth to the story scrawled on the opposite page, she looked up to its author who sported an expectant and albeit anxious look in his brown eyes. A smile crossed her lips as she said, "Very well done, my friend."

The former burglar grinned back, taking the leather-bound journal from her offered hands, "I'm so glad you love it, I imagined you would anyway, considering everything." He chuckled, looking down at the journal and adding as he looked up at his old friend, "I meant to go back, you know, to see the Lonely Mountain… from what you've said it sounds like the boys have maintained things well these last several decades."

"Fili told me their truce with the Lake-men has been going fine, too, even if it's Bard's grandson now who's their king…" The she-elf nodded along, looking to her old friend as the quiet began to settle between them, smiling for him, "Some days I miss it… everything except the dragon, of course."

Bilbo shuddered at the reminder, earning a chuckle from her, giving a squeeze to the journal in his possession, before looking to the elf who suddenly perked up and looked past him with a grin. He followed her gaze to see his nephew being greeted by his friends.

Eäriel helped him stand from the bench they had occupied, nodding to Frodo when her friend looked up at her wondering if she would linger, grinning again as the younger hobbit came to embrace his uncle. She skirted around the two hobbits to let them have their moment, turning down one walkway to let her feet guide her to her room not far away.

Entering her room, she paused at hearing the sound of hooves coming to a halt from the entrance courtyard and no sooner did she take off to see who had come. The elves from the Grey Havens had arrived earlier in the day, after breakfast actually, and no sooner did the men of Dale and Rohan arrive too, so that only left the wood elves, the dwarves, and the men of Gondor.

In all fairness she didn't know what to expect of the emissaries from Mirkwood, so she was surprised when reaching the top of the stairs leading down to the courtyard below at seeing a familiar pair of elves dismounting their steeds. Inhaling as her eyes lingered on the lighter-haired of the two, longer than she would've liked anyway, she exhaled and glanced heavenward asking the Valar for this to go without incident.

The redheaded elf minded the miffed light lingering in his blue eyes and she gripped his shoulder on habit, "Try not to start anything?" She requested, meeting his gaze with an expectant expression of her own.

The blonde let her remove her hand and slightly shook his head as he nodded, "I'm glad you're the less bullheaded between you and…"

"_Gwathel!_" An elated voice called from the top of the stairs, cutting him off and causing he and the other female to look on the familiar brunette elf.

Tauriel beamed at seeing her former second who descended the stairs to properly welcome them, accepting the tight embrace from her fellow woman and returning it just as tight, knowing without having to see the prince at her side fold his arms at his chest with an unamused look on his face.

Eäriel grinned on her old friend as they drew apart, her grin faltering as she looked from the redhead to the otherwise-quiet blonde nearby, clearing her throat. "Good to see you again, as well, Legolas." She greeted politely.

Legolas ignored the quick glance between them from Tauriel, nodding back to his former betrothed, "Likewise, Eäriel."

Eäriel repressed the memory of the last time they had reunited with much-frostier words, looking between her kinsmen and smiling for maturity's sake, "Come on, then, Uncle's been expecting you." She said, gesturing they go ahead of her up the stairs to the rest of the settlement.

Tauriel noted the moody hint in his blasé face as he went ahead of her, sparing a heavenward glance. This was going to be fun… she briefly wished it had been Elros who had come instead of the now-moody Mirkwood prince.

* * *

"…Strangers from distant lands, friends of old, you've been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor. None can escape it, you will unite or fall and therefore every race is bound to this fate and possible doom." Elrond began as he briefly glanced over the faces of those who had come per summons his children had carried out months ago, letting his eyes rest upon the twins and their adopted sister who sat near him with the stragglers of the party that were the two Baggins hobbits, Aragorn, Gandalf and Glorfindel. His gaze rested on the younger halfling as he said, "let us see the Ring, Frodo."

Silently gulping as he stood from the chair that was rather large for a hobbit, Frodo stepped into the center of the room to deposit the gold trinket atop the small pedestal before he shuffled back to his seat at Bilbo's right, and he was rather surprised at the murmurs that arose seconds before he sat down again.

Eäriel glanced around at those gathered when sensing a sudden shift in the air of the room at the revealing of the tiny trinket that was brought into the light for all to see. Her sharp eyes looked on one of the men of Gondor who stood to his feet, and she raised a brow at gauging his altogether-neat appearance, even down to his shoulder-length hair and beard. Her nose threatened to wrinkle as she wasn't surprised to see the Steward's firstborn present.

It wasn't that she loathed Gondor or its people, but if they refused a king who was born to rule and to let their capital city be run by a sniveling excuse of a man, then what use was it to put faith in them? Perhaps bad experience with her own people had left her embittered.

"…A pale light lingered in the west, and a voice cried out as it said, '_Your doom is at hand for Isildur's Bane is found_'." The man declared absently, as he wasn't entirely focused on those watching him, with his left hand now seconds from touching the small ring on the pedestal. "_'Isildur's Bane_'…"

Before he could so much as put a finger on it, Gandalf shot to his feet at that moment and opened his mouth as Black Speech spewed out like a malicious curse that caused the sky to darken above and dense tension to electrify the air. The elves of Mirkwood flinched as if in pain, as their kin felt as if a migraine were coming on; even Eäriel covered her ears that throbbed with white noise… And then the sky was cleared again, and the tension removed from the room, as Gandalf had finished speaking in the foul tongue.

The Captain had retreated to his chair with his senses returned as the elves gathered looked to the grey-clad wizard with a mixture of relief and irritation at his actions.

"Noone has dared utter that tongue in my home." Elrond was first to reproach as he scowled slightly at his friend.

Gandalf replied, "I do not ask for your pardon, Lord Elrond, so that all who sit here will know that the Ring is pure evil in _and_ of itself!"

The Gondorian stood as the wizard retreated to his seat, "But it is a gift, a gift to the foes of Mordor! Why not use the Ring? Long has my father kept the forces of Mordor at bay, and by the blood of my people are your lands kept safe! Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy so that we can use it against him…!" He stated.

Aragorn was the one to reproach him this time, "You cannot use it and the same goes for everyone else! The Ring answers solely to Sauron… It has no other master."

"Just what would a mere _Ranger_ know of this, then?" Boromir snapped coolly as he scowled at his fellow man.

"You think your little prophetic tale will hold sway here, but it truly does _not_, Captain." Eäriel cut in, her tone sharp, as she stood from her chair and added when seeing her outburst caught him off guard even if for a second, "Never mind that you should apologize to my friend. He is Aragorn, Isildur's Heir and _obvious_ heir to the throne of Gondor! You'd do well to bow the knee."

Aragorn refrained from pinching the bridge of his nose as he said, "_That is enough, Eäriel_." He received a mild look from the brazen she-elf as their eyes met, to which she puffed and retook her seat between Tauriel and Elrohir.

"_This_ is Aragorn, then…" Boromir mused in somewhat surprise, glancing between the Ranger and his elvish spokesperson who spared him a withering scowl, before his face hardened a bit and he said as he returned to his chair, "Gondor does not _have_ or _need_ a king." He shot a look at Aragorn before sitting down.

Gandalf spoke up again, "Aragorn is right, for we cannot use the Ring."

"You have only one choice, then; the Ring must be destroyed." Elrond declared as he glanced around at the party members who had since fallen silent after the brief dispute between his former ward and the Steward's son.

A pocket of tense silence filled the air before one of the dwarves of Erebor, a redhead one that she recognized as Glóin's son, stood up to swing his axe down on the Ring to smash it.

Frodo flinched slightly at the blow dealt to the trinket before he looked at the offending dwarf to see he had been thrown back on his rear from the attempt, his axe's blade shattered in pieces and a look of shock on his bearded face.

"The Ring cannot be destroyed with any weapons we've crafted, Gimli son of Glóin, for it must be unmade by the fires of Mount Doom… One of you must take it there." Elrond reproached calmly, unfazed when his younger son rolled his eyes at the dwarf's foolishness, looking to everyone in the room.

Boromir voiced his opinion again, "One doesn't simply waltz into _Mordor!_ Its black gates are guarded by creatures fouler than orcs, and there is evil there that does not sleep. The Great Eye is always watchful, it is a barren wasteland with the pungent air riddled with fire, ash, and dust… Not with ten thousand arms could you enter there. It is a fool's plight." The grimness in his voice and his handsome face told her that he knew firsthand of what lay to the South, and she inwardly shuddered at the thought.

She had faced a live dragon in the past, but she doubted that Smaug was as horrific as whatever resided in Mordor… she would rather face dragonfire again than make herself or her friends enter that foul place.

"Have you heard _nothing_ of what Lord Elrond said? The Ring must be destroyed!" Legolas stated as he scowled at him.

Gimli barked back, "And I suppose _you_ think you're entitled to do it!"

"And if we fail… _then_ what, if Sauron takes back what is his!" Boromir chimed in.

"I would be dead before I ever see the Ring in the hands of an elf; _never trust an elf!_" Gimli shouted as he stood to his feet, his words shortly followed by several voices as those gathered straightened to begin arguing amongst themselves, save five members of the party.

Elrond shook his head at the sight, mirroring Aragorn and Glorfindel as well as Bilbo and Frodo, before he looked to Eäriel as she nodded to the two hobbits near her between straightening from her chair once again. He arched a brow and mentally braced himself for what she was going to do, as he knew for a fact that she didn't like senseless squabbles.

A sharp whistle sounded from the brazen elleth, causing her kinsmen to wince at the noise and the remainder of their guests to snap to and look to her. "You lot should be ashamed of yourselves, behaving like children and shouting at each other. Not only have you turned this meet into a senseless affair, but you've also disrespected my uncle to boot. Shut your flapping gums and sit down, all of you!" She ordered with finality, keeping her place as the otherwise-cowed returned to their seats before she gave a slight bob of the head. "Thank you, gentlemen."

"I will take the Ring." A small voice said then, earning the attention of those in the room as all eyes fell on Frodo who had stood up in the silence that followed the elleth's words, and he looked around at everyone as he continued, "**I** will take it to Mordor… Though I do not know how to get there." A meek light entered his blue eyes, earning a soft look from the outspoken she-elf.

Gandalf stood as well and went to the halfling's side, "I will help you with this burden so long as it is yours to bear, Frodo Baggins." He smiled warmly on him as he stood at his left.

"I can and will protect you, if by my life or death…" Aragorn also stood to join the wizard, briefly bowing the knee to the halfling as he added, "You have my sword." He straightened to stand on his right.

"You know that I'm not about to let _you_ have all the fun, my friend… You have my bow." Eäriel pointed out with a warm smile extended to the younger Baggins, receiving an amused look from him as she stepped up to stand with Gandalf, knowing without looking at Bilbo that he was glad she volunteered her aid.

"And you've got my bow as well." Legolas spoke up, receiving a curious look from Tauriel as he smiled on the hobbit before moving to stand with Aragorn, ignoring the somewhat-shocked look from Eäriel.

"Don't forget _my_ _axe!_" Gimli huffed as he went to stand with Eäriel and ignored the brief look from the prince.

Boromir also volunteered, "You carry the fate of us all, but if this is what the Council agrees on… then Gondor will see it done." He stood near Gimli and earned a mild look from the lone elleth.

Eäriel raised both brows when hearing a slight yell before Sam popped in from having been spying on them in the nearby bushes.

"Mr. Frodo's not goin' anywhere without me!" Sam said proudly.

Elrond also arched both brows at the brave hobbit as he remarked, "that seems obvious, given he was summoned to a secret meeting and you were _not_, Master Gamgee." He noted the hobbit straightened under his stare as a smile began to brighten his former charge's face.

"We're coming too!" Merry claimed as he and Pippin shot forward from having been hiding in the doorway of the room, both hobbits skidding to a halt to stand with Frodo and Sam. "You'd have to send us home strung up in a bag before stopping us." He added.

Pippin put in with confidence, "You need people of intelligence on this sort of mission… quest… _thing!_"

"That rules _you_ out, then, Pip," Merry lightly elbowed him; Gandalf shook his head behind them as Eäriel bit back a giggle.

Elrond nodded slightly as he counted them, "Ten companions… So be it; you will be the Fellowship of the Ring!" He stated.

"Great… Where're we going?" Pippin said chirpily.

Gimli, Legolas and Boromir unanimously sported a rather puzzled look; Aragorn and Gandalf shared a look of mild exasperation; Frodo chuckled as Sam and Merry both elbowed Pippin; Eäriel laughed.

* * *

"You could've told me."

"I was going to, before Lord Thranduil gave us the task of coming to the meet… Never mind that you should know well that you would've been asked regardless."

Eäriel shot her a look between wiping a stubborn smudge from the metal layer on her bow's curve, minding the brilliant gem that the other elleth wore to keep her braid tied, looking down at the weapon in her hands, "Mum always said formality wasn't dead yet." She mused.

Tauriel caught the pout in her voice and looked at the suddenly-focused elleth seated near her, shaking her head with a quiet laugh, "I'd think you would be more uneasy about having your ex-betrothed tagging along on a dangerous venture." She remarked.

Pausing at her words, the brown-haired woman regarded the clean surface of her bow's curve and nodded to herself. "Gods know I am.. I knew he wouldn't be happy about it, but after Thorin…" She trailed off and lowered her hand from where it had been tracing her fingers over the slate bead piercing her left ear's cartilage, placing the bow at her side.

"It was wise to break it off, after all you had been through. Legolas will come around… suppose he has to, considering you're both stuck in the same party." The red-haired woman assured, reaching to gently grip her shoulder, smiling for her benefit.

Eäriel allowed a smile at the other elf's comfort, squeezing her hand for a moment, "Which _wasn't_ my doing."

* * *

_* "**Sky Full of Song**" by **Florence + the Machine** (petition to make Florence Welch an elf lady in any future Tolkien film tho? u guys know i'm right.)_


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